How Tired Is Too Tired
Excessive sleepiness and sleep deprivation can have significant impacts on your health. They increase the risk of falling asleep while driving, increase chronic pain, throw off hormonal balance, and lead to weight gain. Quality of life can be significantly compromised by poor sleep. Symptoms of being sleep deprived can include:
- Desire to rest or sleep
- General weakness
- Stress levels
Possible Causes Of Excessive Sleepiness
Written and verified bythe psychologist.
15 November, 2021
Im experiencing excessive sleepiness and all I want to do is close my eyes and let my blankets embrace me. I dont want to think about anything. I dont want to do anything. Does this sound like you? Sherlock Holmes, Arthur Conan Doyles well-known character, pointed out that sleep is almost always the solution to most ills and worries. Sleeping is also an escape route for some people.
Allowing oneself to fall into a state of unconsciousness in which the body and mind are inactive is definitely healthy. However, proper rest must respect circadian rhythms and not exceed eight-nine hours a day. This is because, beyond what you may think, sleeping excessively can be bad for your health.
Life is balance and one must adapt to a series of biorhythms. You must be aware of your bodys needs. Suddenly needing more hours of sleep than usual isnt normal. Therefore, you must figure out what are the underlying causes.
How Can I Ease Or Relieve Fatigue
If a medical condition isnât causing your fatigue, lifestyle changes may improve your symptoms. To reduce fatigue, you can:
- Practice good sleep habits: Aim for seven to nine hours of sleep every night. Donât drink caffeine, use electronics, or exercise right before bed. Try to go to bed and get up at the same time every day.
- Avoid toxins: Donât use illegal drugs, and drink alcohol in moderation, if at all.
- Eat a healthy diet: A balanced diet and plenty of water will keep your body nourished and hydrated.
- Manage stress: Yoga, mindfulness, meditation and regular exercise can help you relieve stress and gain more energy.
- See your healthcare provider: Make an appointment to rule out infections, disease, illness, vitamin deficiencies and other health conditions. You should also talk to your provider about medications youâre taking to see if they are causing your symptoms.
- Exercise often: Regular exercise is crucial for a healthy lifestyle. Though it might seem counter-intuitive, vigorous exercise can help you feel more energetic once you get used to it. But exercising too much can cause fatigue, so talk to your provider about whatâs best for you.
- Maintain a healthy weight: Talk to your healthcare provider about your ideal weight, and try to stay within that range.
Recommended Reading: Does Anxiety Cause Extreme Fatigue
Q When Should You See A Doctor For Your Fatigue
A. Talk to yourprovider as soon as you or those around you experience any amount of concern.Simply expressing the problem should lead to a discussion about thetopic.
Your provider will likelywant to evaluate you to determine the severity of your symptoms and potentialcauses. Typically, the evaluation starts with a thorough history and physicalexam.
Doctors also use specificquestions to measure how tired you feel. Terms like feeling tired,experiencing fatigue, having lack of energy and feeling especially sleepyare often used interchangeably. However, its important for your provider todistinguish between them to figure out the cause.
Based on your responses,your doctor can figure out the appropriate approach for diagnosing you. You mayneed additional testing, such as lab work, imaging or sleep studies, todetermine the cause. Once your provider gets to the bottom of the fatigueissue, they can work with you on how to solve it.
Is Excessive Sleepiness Common
If youre wondering why youre so sleepy, youre not alone. Excessive Sleepiness is common, in fact, 40% of people exhibit occasional symptoms of hypersomnia.
Hypersomnia is the clinical term for excessive sleepiness and excessive sleeping. The condition is marked by excessive daytime sleepiness or an above-average amount of time sleeping . Many with hypersomnia can fall asleep anywhere or at any time which is a bit awkward at work but a lot more troublesome while driving.
You May Like: Is There A Test For Chronic Fatigue
Fast Fix For Mild Fatigue
If you have mild fatigue that isn’t linked to any medical condition, the solution may be exercise. Research suggests healthy but tired adults can get a significant energy boost from a modest workout program. In one study, participants rode a stationary bike for 20 minutes at a mild pace. Doing this just three times a week was enough to fight fatigue.
How To Treat Fatigue
If you have been experiencing fatigue, it is important to talk to your doctor in order to rule out any underlying medical conditions that may be causing this lack of energy. Once you are sure the cause is not related to a health issue, it may be beneficial to try one or more of the following tips to help boost your energy.
Exercise. When youre exhausted, exercising may be the furthest thing from your mind, but research shows that physical activity can boost your energy levels and help you shake off that fatigue. Regular exercise can improve the function of your heart, lungs, and muscles as well as increase your stamina for other activities.
Hydrate. Not getting enough water and allowing yourself to become dehydrated can cause fatigue and make it harder for you to perform daily tasks and chores. Not getting enough water can also decrease alertness and concentration, therefore, it is important to stay hydrated for both your physical and mental states.
Sleep. Getting enough sleep can prevent you from feeling fatigue and drowsiness that may impact your daily functioning. If you find you are unable to get a sufficient amount of sleep through the night, it may be a good idea to take a short nap during the day to boost your energy.
Lose weight. Carrying around excess weight can exhaust your bodys energy stores faster than if you were a healthy weight. Losing weight will not only increase your energy, but relieve any extra strain upon your heart.
Don’t Miss: Mega Comfort Anti Fatigue Insoles
The Impact Of Caffeine And Energy Drinks
90% of American adults drink caffeine-infused beverages almost every day. This includes coffee, tea, and energy drinks, which have high quantities of sugar in addition to containing the same amount of caffeine as a cup of coffee. Some of the smaller energy shots can contain up to 160mg of caffeine in a 60ml bottle. With extreme tiredness, you may start drinking too much of these drinks to give yourself a temporary energy boost.
The problem is that these caffeinated beverages have short-lived results and do not tackle your general fatigue. Caffeine has a stimulatory effect on the nervous system, and creates a momentary surge of adrenaline. However, once it subsides, you are left drained of energy the opposite effect to what you wanted. Caffeine can also lead to other problems such as:
So rather than improving your fatigue, caffeine can cause you to feel worse.
What It Is Its Causes And Consequences And How Its Diagnosed And Treated
Excessive daytime sleepiness affects between 10% and 20% of the American population, and research suggests its on the rise. The 2020 Sleep in America Poll found that Americans report feeling sleepy an average of three days a week, and experience significant effects on mood and physical health as a result.
Though not a disorder in itself, excessive daytime sleepiness is something to take seriously. Your body may be trying to tell you that you are not getting enough sleep, or it may be raising red flags about a sleep disorder or other health condition. Its important to recognize the signs of excessive daytime sleepiness so you can identify and remedy the cause.
Also Check: Can Heart Problems Cause Fatigue
Who Gets Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Chronic fatigue syndrome can affect people of all ethnicities and ages, but is most common in people in their forties or fifties. It’s very rare in kids. A few teens do get CFS, and it affects more girls than guys.
Sometimes different people in the same family get CFS. This may be because the tendency to develop CFS is genetic.
Excessive Daytime Sleepiness : Causes Symptoms Treatments
Nearly everyone has had a day where they feel so tired during the day, that they have a difficult time staying awake. For a majority of individuals, the tiredness is caused by insufficient sleep and/or a possible hangover from partying too hard the previous night. However, some people battle a condition known as excessive daytime sleepiness which results in chronic feelings of fatigue and sleepiness throughout the day even after a full nights sleep.
You May Like: Copper Anti Fatigue Foot Sleeves
What Is Excessive Sleepiness
Although excessive sleepiness overlaps with fatigue, it is a distinctly different symptom. When a person experiences excessive sleepiness, they tend to nod off or fall asleep when they want to be awake. When a person experiences fatigue, they often feel tired but do not usually fall asleep when they want to be awake.
Excessive sleepiness is often referred to as excessive daytime sleepiness, or EDS, by physicians and sleep specialists. To eliminate or reduce your EDS, you must first figure out why you are experiencing it.
Psychological Causes Of Tiredness
Psychological tiredness is much more common than tiredness caused by a physical problem. Both anxiety and depression can make you feel very tired. Eating disorders can make you feel tired, particularly if you are underweight or overweight. Any cause of a sleep problem will also cause tiredness during the day.
Stress is a common cause of tiredness, either because it interferes with sleep, or because of the effect of having a worry on your mind all the time.
Other possible causes include:
Read Also: What Causes Fatigue And Muscle Aches
Why Am I So Tired
You may be asking yourself, Why am I always tired? Why cant I seem to get out of this low-energy fog? First of all, youre not alone. Fatigue is a common problem and can manifest as feeling tired physically and/or mentally. The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention reports that about 15.3% of women and 10.1% of men regularly feel very tired or exhausted.
We all know that feeling exhausted reduces our ability to work effectively, manage day-to-day routines, and maintain family and social relationships. Extreme fatigue can cause us to be more prone to irritability and mood swings. Tragically, drowsiness when driving also causes about 72,000 car crashes a year in the U.S.
Chronic Obstructive Pulmonary Disease
Chronic obstructive pulmonary disease causes wheezing, shortness of breath, and excess mucus in the airways, all of which make it hard to breathe. The disease gets worse over time and is especially common in current or past smokers.
The assumption has long been that difficulty breathing led to fatigue, but some research indicates it’s more complicated than that and calls for more investigation into other possible causes. Once those are understood, it should become easier to manage COPD-related fatigue. For now, the primary focus is on breathing exercises and establishing healthy habits.
Read Also: What Doctor Treats Chronic Fatigue Syndrome
Q Whats A Normal Level Of Fatigue For An Adult
A. Feeling tiredis one of the most common complaints doctors hear about. And fatigue is normalif you had a late night and then feel tired the next day.
Butfatigue can become a concern when it affects yourhealth and safety. For example, its a problem if youre likely to doze off insituations where you need to maintain alertness, such as while driving oroperating heavy machinery.
Sotalk to your doctor if fatigue is compromising your safety. Your doctor willalso want to know how long youve been experiencing symptoms to help determinethe cause of your exhaustion.
Differences Between Sleepiness And Fatigue
It may seem like semantics, arguing over the meanings of similar words, but the difference between sleepiness and fatigue really does matter. Not only can discriminating between these distinctive feelings identify different causes, but it may also help to treat certain disorders.
Also Check: How Long Does Fatigue Last During Menopause
What Happens At Your Appointment
The GP will want to find out why you’re sleeping excessively. They might:
- ask you about possible causes of your sleepiness, such mental or physical health problems, or any medicines you may be taking
- suggest you keep a diary of when you sleep
- refer you to a doctor who specialises in sleep disorders
Treatment for excessive sleepiness will depend on what’s causing it. It may include medicine to help keep you awake.
When To Talk To Your Doctor
You should see a doctor if youre feeling tired all the time, if excessive daytime sleepiness is affecting your day-to-day life, or if you believe it might be a sign of an underlying disorder.
Your doctor will run tests and ask questions about your sleep habits to attempt to pinpoint the reason for your sleepiness. They may also ask your bed partner whether you gasp, snore, or move your legs during the night. If they suspect a sleep disorder, they may refer you to a sleep specialist to run more tests.
Treatment methods for daytime sleepiness depend on the cause. The doctor will likely start by recommending sleep hygiene tips and encourage you to get more sleep. They may adjust the medications you take, and they will also work with you to develop a treatment plan for underlying disorders, which need to be treated in their own right.
- Was this article helpful?
Read Also: Does Adrenal Fatigue Cause Weight Gain
How Can My Doctor Manage Fatigue
To find out what is causing your fatigue, your healthcare provider will ask questions about your lifestyle and medications and will conduct a physical examination. They might order some lab tests to test blood and urine. If you are a woman of child-bearing age, your provider will probably order a pregnancy test.
To relieve fatigue, your provider will treat the condition or disorder thatâs causing it. Depending on your health, your treatment plan may include a combination of medication, exercise, or therapy. If youâre taking a medication that makes you feel exhausted, talk to your healthcare provider about the risks and benefits of stopping the medication or trying another one.
Is It Possible That I Have Pots And Was Incorrectly Diagnosed
This is entirely possible. Given how common POTS symptoms are and how unfamiliar many doctors are with this condition, diagnostic mishaps happen. POTS is frequently misidentified as chronic fatigue syndrome, fibromyalgia, myofascial pain syndrome, anxiety disorder, ADHD, irritable bowel syndrome, myositis, etc. It is also possible that you have both POTS and one of these conditions, which may complicate the diagnosis. Sometimes people with POTS are told that its all in your head, implying that the cause of their symptoms is psychological. If you feel like something is physically wrong, dont hesitate to seek a second, and even a third or fourth opinion.
COVID-19 and POTS: Is There a Link?
Although many people recover quickly from COVID-19, the disease caused by the coronavirus, others who recover may continue to experience symptoms for months. Researchers are still determining the cause of these extended symptoms, but some COVID-19 “long-haulers” may actually be dealing with POTS.
Don’t Miss: Miracle Copper Anti Fatigue Compression Socks
How Is Chronic Fatigue Syndrome Treated
There’s no known cure for chronic fatigue syndrome. But experts say that these lifestyle changes can help:
- Include regular, carefully planned exercise in your daily routine. Exercise can increase energy and make a person feel better. People with CFS should pace themselves while doing any physical activity that requires exertion. Talk with a doctor what’s right for you you don’t want to overdo it and get discouraged. Studies show that “graded exercise” is very helpful in CFS recovery.
- Follow stress-management and stress-reduction techniques. A doctor or therapist can teach these they’re great ways to take control of some aspects of the illness.
- Ensure good sleep habits to overcome CFS-related sleep problems.
- Work on ways to keep track of important things, such as keeping lists and making notes, you have problems with concentration or memory.
Meeting regularly with a therapist or counselor can help in CFS treatment. The main goals of therapy are to help people cope with the illness and to change negative or unrealistic thoughts or feelings into positive, realistic ones.
Having a positive feeling that you can get better is very helpful. Therapy and support groups can also help teens with CFS and their parents deal with the academic or social challenges brought on by the illness, such as missed school, falling grades, or withdrawal from friends and social situations.
Doctors may suggest over-the-counter or prescription medicines for some of these symptoms.
Causes Of Excessive Sleepiness
Sleeping too much isnt healthy. In fact, most people have experienced the feeling of waking up after a ten or 11-hour break and feeling sleepier than usual at some point. Moreover, studies such as this one conducted at the Stanford University of Medicine reveal meaningful things about this subject.
Sleeping more than nine hours affects your quality of life and can lead to a bad performance at work, at school, and even with your friends and family. Excessive sleep leads to a sedentary lifestyle and increases the risk of cardiovascular and brain diseases. This is a fact to keep in mind.
Thus, feeling like all you want to do is sleep is an indicator of an underlying problem and you must be aware of it in order to manage it properly.
Recommended Reading: Breast Cancer Recurrence Symptoms Fatigue
